Americans United - virginiahttps://au.org/tags/virginia
enSeize The Day!: Upcoming Religious Freedom Event Provides An Opportunity For Separation Advocateshttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/seize-the-day-upcoming-religious-freedom-event-provides-an-opportunity-for
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">It&#039;s time to rescue Religious Freedom Day from obscurity. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Two weeks from today, the nation will celebrate Religious Freedom Day.</p><p>Don’t feel bad if you were not aware of that. Most people aren’t. Religious Freedom Day, which is celebrated every Jan. 16, tends to be somewhat obscure. My desk calendar, which includes Groundhog Day, Armed Forces Day and Benito Juarez’s Birthday, does not list Religious Freedom Day.</p><p>That’s a shame. The holiday commemorates the Virginia General Assembly’s passage of Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom on Jan. 16, 1786. This <a href="https://www.au.org/files/pdf_documents/virginia-statute-for.pdf">pioneering legislation</a>, regarded as a precursor to the Constitution’s First Amendment, ended the state-established church in Virginia and went on to guarantee religious liberty for all.</p><p>The statute reads in part, “Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.”</p><p>Frederick Clarkson, a journalist and long-time critic of the Religious Right, recently <a href="http://www.talk2action.org/story/2014/12/27/204153/90/Front_Page/The_Christian_Right_Still_Does_Not_Want_You_To_Know_About_This_Day">penned a column</a> suggesting that advocates of church-state separation need to do more to promote Religious Freedom Day. Clarkson rightly points out that the Virginia Statute rebukes Religious Right notions of an officially “Christian America.”</p><p>A little background is helpful: In Virginia, the Anglican Church was established by law. Dissenters, which included Presbyterians, Baptists and Enlightenment-era Deists, spent years pushing for change.</p><p>Jefferson had originally introduced his religious liberty bill in 1779, but it went nowhere. But during the post-Revolution era, the issue of religious freedom was hotly debated again in Virginia. Patrick Henry had proposed a bill that would have required all citizens to pay a tax “for the support of the Christian religion, or of some Christian church, denomination or communion of Christians, or for some form of Christian worship.”</p><p>James Madison was no fan of this proposal – he called it “obnoxious” and “dishonorable.” Madison was determined to see the Henry bill die, and he penned the classic <a href="https://www.au.org/files/pdf_documents/madisons-memorial.pdf">“Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments”</a> in 1785, which rallied opposition to the measure.</p><p>Madison’s eloquent arguments did the trick: Henry’s bill was defeated. But Madison didn’t stop there. He also resurrected Jefferson’s religious liberty bill and pushed it through the legislature. As noted, it became law on Jan. 16, 1786.</p><p>Jefferson was representing U.S. interests in France while much of this was going on. But Madison wrote to him regularly and kept him informed about developments. Years later, Jefferson noted that after Madison re-introduced the Virginia Statute, some legislators attempted to amend it so that it protected Christians only.</p><p>The effort failed. The amendment, Jefferson noted, “was rejected by a great majority, in proof that they meant to comprehend within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and the Mahometan, the Hindoo, the infidel of every denomination.”</p><p>Considering the times, this was nothing short of remarkable. Within the space of a few years, Virginia went from having an established church to a system that protected the rights of everyone – even Muslims, Hindus and infidels!</p><p>I think you can see why the Religious Right is not very fond of this history. It explodes their phony “Christian nation” vision of America.</p><p>Americans United and other groups are working with Clarkson to get the word out about Religious Freedom Day. What can you do to help?</p><p>Lots of things. Encourage local media to write about the day. Send a letter to the editor of your local newspaper. If you’re active on social media, post about the day on Facebook and issue tweets about.</p><p>If you blog or know bloggers who write about church-state issues, religious liberty, freethought issues or related topics, use those platforms to spread the word about Religious Freedom Day.</p><p>Are of you of an artistic bent? Think up some clever graphics and share them online. Don’t overlook the power of visual material. A clever graphic or video can go viral on social media.</p><p>And please don’t hesitate to use the resources linked to in this post, including the <a href="https://www.au.org/files/pdf_documents/virginia-statute-for.pdf">text</a> of the Virginia Statute itself. We want this material to be shared.</p><p>As Clarkson puts it, “As religious equality advances, so does equal rights for all. So you can see why the Christian Right might not want people – <em>people like us</em> – thinking like Jefferson. And that is why we must.”</p><p>Clarkson is right. The rise of true religious freedom in America is an amazing story. It’s one that we must not hesitate to tell over and over. We’ll have an opportunity in the next few weeks to tell that story. Let’s get to work.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/responding-common-attacks-church-state-separation">Responding to Common Attacks on Church-State Separation</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/history-and-origins-church-state-separation">History and Origins of Church-State Separation</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/religious-freedom-day">Religious Freedom Day</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/thomas-jefferson">thomas jefferson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/james-madison">James Madison</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/frederick-clarkson">Frederick Clarkson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/memorial-and-remonstrance-against-religious-assessments">Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia-statute-religious-freedom">Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom</a></span></div></div>Fri, 02 Jan 2015 16:00:52 +0000Rob Boston10799 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/seize-the-day-upcoming-religious-freedom-event-provides-an-opportunity-for#commentsJailhouse Blues: Muslim Woman In Ohio Claims She Was Forced To Attend Christian Services While Incarceratedhttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/jailhouse-blues-muslim-woman-in-ohio-claims-she-was-forced-to-attend
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Some people working in the law enforcement and correctional communities have a belief that the best way to rehabilitate offenders is to convert them to fundamentalist Christianity. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>A Muslim woman <a href="http://www.cleveland.com/cuyahoga-county/index.ssf/2014/12/muslim_woman_says_in_lawsuit_she_was_forced_to_attend_christian_prayer_service_while_held_in_cuyahog.html">is suing officials</a> in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, claiming she was forced to attend Christian services while incarcerated in the county jail.</p><p>Sakeena Majeed, 24, served two months at the Cuyahoga County Correctional Center earlier this year after she was convicted of assaulting two police officers. She claims that while there, she was threatened with solitary confinement if she did not attend weekly Christian prayer services led by a Baptist minister.</p><p>Majeed had been assigned to an area of the jail designed for low-level offenders. The area, known as a “trustee pod,” is an open part of the jail where cell doors aren’t locked and inmates have a good bit of freedom to move about. Going from this open atmosphere to solitary confinement can only be described as a severe form of punishment.</p><p>Although she attended the services rather than face time in solitary, Majeed refused to participate. In her <a href="https://s3.amazonaws.com/s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1383232/majeed-complaint-filed-1.pdf">lawsuit</a>, she claims that correctional officers prodded her to take part and mocked her when she refused.</p><p>County officials have refused to comment on the lawsuit other than to insist that the religious beliefs of all inmates are accommodated.</p><p>So what really went on? It’s hard to say. The pressure could have come from a handful of rogue correctional officers acting without authority from their superiors. Or it could have been county policy to compel inmates to attend Christian services. It’s also possible that Majeed has exaggerated the incident.</p><p>There’s one thing that makes me believe she may have a case: We’ve seen this sort of thing before in prisons and jails. Some people working in the law enforcement and correctional communities have a belief that the best way to rehabilitate offenders is to convert them to fundamentalist Christianity. I think this view is naïve, but there’s no denying that it’s out there. We’ve faced it on many occasions.</p><p>Americans United <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/shutting-innerchanges-doors-iowa-corrections-officials-cut-ties-to-prison">fought successfully</a> in court to block taxpayer funding of InnerChange, a fundamentalist program run by the late Charles Colson’s Prison Fellowship, in an Iowa prison. Colson claimed that the program dramatically cut rates of recidivism among ex-inmates, but <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/september-2003-church-state/people-events/colson-prison-success-inflated-by-study-says">an objective study</a> failed to back that up.</p><p>There are other examples. A program in Chesapeake, Va., purports to rehabilitate offenders through <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/february-2014-church-state/au-bulletin/va-jail-offers-bible-program-to-inmates">Bible study</a>. In Phoenix, officials are offering women accused of prostitution the option of going to jail or attending a <a href="https://www.au.org/media/press-releases/americans-united-tells-phoenix-officials-to-end-use-of-anti-prostitution">religious program</a>. At one South Carolina jail, the only reading material made available to inmates was <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/november-2010-church-state/au-bulletin/sc-jail-can%E2%80%99t-promote-bible-lawsuit-says">the Bible</a>. An Alabama community offered certain offenders a choice <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/november-2011-church-state/featured/jesus-or-jail">between jail and church</a>, and a woman convicted of a drug offense in Idaho was given a <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/improper-pressure-idaho-inmate-had-to-accept-jail-or-jesus">similar choice</a>.</p><p>These are just a few examples. A few months ago, <em>Church &amp; State</em> <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/julyaugust-2014-church-state/featured/cops-for-christ">reported</a> on the growing nexus between law enforcement and fundamentalist Christianity. It is a growing – and troubling – trend.</p><p>Working in a correctional institution is a tough job, and I understand that some officers and officials must get frustrated over the behavior of inmates. But compelling someone to attend religious services against his or her will isn’t the answer.</p><p>If that is indeed what happened to Majeed, then she deserves to win her case. Men and women who are locked up in correctional facilities do by necessity give up many of their rights. But their right to be free from forced religion isn’t one of them.</p><p> </p><p> </p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/other-free-exercise-issues-including-rfras-zoning-etc">Other Free Exercise Issues (including RFRAs, zoning, etc.)</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/ohio">Ohio</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/cuahoga-county">Cuahoga County</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/sakeena-majeed">Sakeena Majeed</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/charles-colson">Charles Colson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/innerchange">InnerChange</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/south-carolina">South Carolina</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/alabama">Alabama</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/phoenix">Phoenix</a></span></div></div>Mon, 22 Dec 2014 15:57:02 +0000Rob Boston10759 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/jailhouse-blues-muslim-woman-in-ohio-claims-she-was-forced-to-attend#commentsFall From Grace: What The Religious Right Should Learn From The McDonnell Scandalhttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/fall-from-grace-what-the-religious-right-should-learn-from-the-mcdonnell
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Travel back with me to 2009: Robert McDonnell was campaigning for Virginia governor, and TV preacher Pat Robertson was ecstatic.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Leaders of Religious Right groups are fond of telling us that if we elect more fundamentalist Christians to office, we’ll have less corruption. Biblical literalists must be more ethical, right?</p><p>That claim is looking a little thin in light of recent events in Virginia. Yesterday, Robert F. McDonnell, the state’s former governor, was <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/mcdonnell-jury-in-third-day-of-deliberations/2014/09/04/0e01ff88-3435-11e4-9e92-0899b306bbea_story.html?tid=pm_pop">found guilty</a> on 11 counts related to public corruption, conspiracy and bribery. His wife, Maureen, whom this "family values" politican tried willingly to <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/eugene-robinson-robert-mcdonnell-throws-his-wife-under-the-bus-at-trial/2014/08/21/664c5ebe-2971-11e4-958c-268a320a60ce_story.html">throw under the bus</a>, was found guilty on nine charges.</p><p>The McDonnells were accused of essentially selling influence in exchange for gifts, lavish vacations and sweetheart loans of $120,000 from a wealthy businessman named Jonnie R. Williams Sr. McDonnell is the first Virginia governor to be charged with a crime and the first convicted of one.</p><p>It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Travel back with me to 2009. McDonnell was campaigning for the governor’s mansion, and TV preacher Pat Robertson was ecstatic.</p><p>You see, McDonnell had attended Robertson’s Regent University. In fact, a master’s thesis he wrote while there briefly <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/october-2009-church-state/people-events/regent-university-thesis-becomes-hot-issue-in">became a campaign issue</a>. Robertson was excited to think that one of his own would soon lead the Old Dominion.</p><p>McDonnell won the race easily and soon set out to establish <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/virginia-reels-religious-right-gov-dances-to-pat-robertson%E2%80%99s-tune">godly rule in Virginia</a>. Speaking at Regent, he vowed to bring “servant leadership” to the state.</p><p>“It reflects those words of Jesus, who said that the greatest among you is the servant of all, and the fact that he came not to be served, but to serve,” McDonnell said. “I think that is the model for servant leadership.”</p><p>In reality, this “servant leadership” tended to look like the same old Religious Right agenda. When state officials decided that police chaplains should use non-sectarian prayers at public events, <a href="http://hamptonroads.com/2010/04/mcdonnell-rescinds-state-police-prayer-policy-referring-jesus">McDonnell rescinded</a> the order. McDonnell’s obsession with blocking access to legal abortion earned him the nickname <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/virginia-gov-bob-mcdonnell-signs-virginia-ultrasound-bill/">“Gov. Ultrasound.”</a> He drew up <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/adopting-bias-new-va-rules-seek-to-safeguard-%E2%80%98faith-based%E2%80%99-bigotry">new rules</a> allowing tax-funded “faith-based” adoption agencies to deny services to anyone who failed to meet a strict theological litmus test. He signed a law mandating that public colleges in Virginia give funding to student groups even if they discriminate on religious grounds. McDonnell appointed a private school voucher advocate as education secretary and shifted funding for sex education from comprehensive programs to “abstinence-only” approaches that critics say are often anchored in religion.</p><p>McDonnell also pushed for a state constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriage (which was later approved by the voters) and even appeared on Robertson’s “700 Club” to lobby for it. <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/pat-loves-bobby-robertson-mcdonnell-push-marriage-amendment">McDonnell told</a> a beaming Robertson, “From the Garden of Eden to 2006, we’ve believed that marriage is between a man and a woman. But because of some social trends out there and some court decisions, Pat, as you know, marriage is under attack.”</p><p>(Robertson, of course, is sticking by McDonnell and, as he is wont to do, has fashioned <a href="http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/no-one-spins-conspiracy-theory-tv-preacher-pat-robertson">a conspiracy theory</a> to explain it all: You see, President Barack Obama is to blame!)</p><p><a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/virginiapolitics/2010/09/mcdonnell_17.html">McDonnell spoke</a> at the Family Research Council’s Values Voter Summit in 2010 and 2012. Telegenic and polished, he was seen as a Religious Right rising star. There was talk about putting him on a future Republican ticket as vice president.</p><p>All of that came crashing down when McDonnell was indicted in January.</p><p>Look, politicians and public figures can let their supporters down. It happens. But it seems to happen to the Religious Right pretty often. And usually, despite their high-handed moralizing, they don’t seem to care.</p><p>Recall how they rallied behind serial adulterer Newt Gingrich. Consider how they never said a peep when U.S. Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) admitted to consorting with prostitutes. Watch them prop up Dinesh D'Souza as he begs a federal court not to <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/03/us-usa-politics-dsouza-idUSKBN0GY2EW20140903">send him to prison</a> for violating campaign-finance laws.</p><p>See them throw money at an obvious political hack like Ralph Reed whose main philosophy seems to be “the ends justify the means.” Watch them support right-wing organizations that advocate <a href="http://www.speakupmovement.org/church/LearnMore/details/4702">openly violating federal law</a> to get their people elected to office.</p><p>Listen to their leaders denounce LGBT Americans in vile language. Observe as they swoon over divisive extremists like Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Bryan Fischer, Tony Perkins, Ben Carson, Sean Hannity, ad nauseam whose primary goal is to line their pockets by setting one group of Americans against another. Go to one of their meetings and be appalled as they feed on a steady diet of hate, fear and rage.</p><p>And remember, these are the people who feel ordained by God to judge the rest of us.</p><p>Based on the politicians and leaders they’ve been backing lately, I’d say it’s time for them to take a break and do some soul searching.</p><p>I’d recommend they start by consulting their own holy book – you know, the one they’re always happy to bash us with. Specifically, they should examine the 7th chapter of the Book of Matthew and the words of Jesus: “Why do you look at the speck of dust that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?...You hypocrite! First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/descriptions-and-activities-religious-right-groups">Descriptions and Activities of Religious Right Groups</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/robert-mcdonnell">Robert McDonnell</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/maureen-mcdonnell">Maureen McDonnell</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/pat-robertson">Pat Robertson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/ralph-reed">ralph reed</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/family-research-council">Family Research Council</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/ben-carson">Ben Carson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/sean-hannity">Sean Hannity</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/sarah-palin">sarah palin</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/bryan-fischer">Bryan Fischer</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/glenn-beck">Glenn Beck</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/tony-perkins">Tony Perkins</a></span></div></div>Fri, 05 Sep 2014 14:47:15 +0000Rob Boston10469 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/fall-from-grace-what-the-religious-right-should-learn-from-the-mcdonnell#commentsSchool Prayer Slammed: Virginia Governor Plans To Veto ‘Religious Freedom’ Billhttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/school-prayer-slammed-virginia-governor-plans-to-veto-religious-freedom
<a href="/about/people/ms-sarah-jones">Sarah Jones</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advertised as a “religious freedom” measure, the bill’s sponsors claimed it would affirm students’ rights to organize religious clubs, to wear religious clothing, and to express religious speech at official school events. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Virginia’s Democratic governor, Terry McAuliffe, has <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/mcauliffe-plans-to-veto-school-prayer-bill/2014/02/20/ce412ffe-9a4c-11e3-80ac-63a8ba7f7942_story.html">announced</a> he’ll veto a controversial school prayer bill if it reaches his desk.<br /><br />The governor’s decision effectively ends an ongoing effort by some state legislators to “return” prayer to public schools. Advertised as a “religious freedom” measure, the bill’s sponsors claimed it would affirm students’ rights to organize religious clubs, to wear religious clothing, and to express religious speech at official school events.<br /><br />Sen. Bill Carrico (R-Grayson County), the bill’s primary sponsor, called it “an anti-discrimination” measure. According to the Fredericksburg <em>Free Lance-Star</em>, Carrico <a href="http://news.fredericksburg.com/on-politics/2014/01/21/senate-passes-school-prayer-bill/">said</a> that if passed, the bill would allow “the expression of one’s faith as a student in the school system.”<br /><br />Other supporters of the measure argued that it would apply to members of all religions, and therefore couldn’t possibly violate the First Amendment.</p><p>“I don’t think there’s anything in this bill that would prevent a Hindu, a Muslim, a Jewish, a Christian or indeed a nonreligious student from exercising their rights under the bill,” Sen. Dick Black (R-Loudoun) <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/school-prayer-approved-in-virginia-senate/2014/01/21/9eb98470-82d2-11e3-9dd4-e7278db80d86_story.html">said</a> in the <em>Washington Post. </em><br /><br />But the bill had troubling implications. It would have prohibited local schools from regulating any religious speech whatsoever; in other words, a student could preach to the entire student body at graduation and the school would be powerless to prevent it.<br /><br />That particular provision is likely inspired by Roy Costner, a South Carolina valedictorian who, after being told he couldn’t deliver a sectarian speech, <a href="http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/06/hear-what-valedictorian-said-for-cheers/">tore up</a> his approved speech at graduation and led students in the Lord’s Prayer. Costner and his supporters claim that his disrespect for the sensibilities of his non-Christian classmates should have been protected speech. It seems likely that Carrico and Black agree.<br /><br />Fortunately, <em>The</em> <em>Post </em>reports that some members of the state Senate pointed out some uncomfortable facts. “Prayers are unlikely to be from anything but the majority religion,” said Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria).<br /><br />That’s a legitimate observation. Virginia is a majority Christian state. It’s unlikely that students, especially students located in the state’s rural areas, would ever be exposed to a Muslim prayer or a Jewish blessing at a school event. Carrico’s bill would essentially give the Costners of Virginia free reign to evangelize.</p><p>In an <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/the-truth-about-school-prayer/2011/12/23/gIQAHHJoEP_blog.html">editorial</a> also published by <em>The</em> <em>Post</em>, Charles Haynes, director of the Religious Freedom Project at D.C.’s Newseum, explained why bills like Carrico’s aren’t necessary.<br /><br />“Advocating for ‘school prayer’ is, of course, a poll-tested winner for politicians seeking to stir voter outrage – and establish Christian conservative bona fides,” he wrote. “The claim that public schools are hostile to Christians may rev up caucus-goers in Iowa, but there’s only one problem: It isn’t true.”<br /><br />“In fact, contrary to culture-war mythology, there is more student religious speech and practice in public schools today than at any time in the past 100 years,” he added.<br /><br />Haynes is absolutely correct. Religious expression is already protected by the First Amendment. Public school students already have the right to live out their faith. They can join the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Young Life, or another religious club. They can wear religious t-shirts and jewelry. And they’re free to explain their beliefs to their classmates.<br /><br />But the Supreme Court has been clear: School-sponsored prayer violates the First Amendment, and that’s why it isn’t permitted at official school events. Students should feel free to express their beliefs, but their right to expression doesn’t include a right to coerce classmates to join them in religious exercise.<br /><br />McAuliffe’s intention to veto the bill is good news for Virginia students. As other governors consider similar measures, let’s hope they follow his example.</p><p>P.S. Virginia is far from alone in pushing official school prayer bills. In fact, it’s a national problem. I wrote a story about the resurgence of school prayer bills in the states for the March issue of <em>Church &amp; State</em>, so be sure to take a look at that next month.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/school-prayer">School Prayer</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/religious-freedom">religious freedom</a></span></div></div>Fri, 21 Feb 2014 17:14:50 +0000Ms. Sarah Jones9672 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/school-prayer-slammed-virginia-governor-plans-to-veto-religious-freedom#commentsEquality On The March: Same-Sex Marriage Moves Forward But Still Faces Legal Challengeshttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/equality-on-the-march-same-sex-marriage-moves-forward-but-still-faces-legal
<a href="/about/people/ms-sarah-jones">Sarah Jones</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">US District Court Judge Arenda Wright Allen began her decision with a lengthy quote from Mildred Loving, the plaintiff in 1967’s Loving v. Virginia, which struck down the state’s Jim Crow-era anti-miscegenation laws. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>A federal judge <a href="http://wtvr.com/2014/02/13/judge-rules-virginias-ban-on-same-sex-marriage-unconstitutional/">struck down</a> Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban last night, calling it an unconstitutional violation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. US District Court Judge Arenda Wright Allen <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/207069119/2-13-cv-00395-135">began her decision</a> with a lengthy quote from Mildred Loving, the plaintiff in 1967’s <em>Loving v. Virginia</em>, which struck down the state’s Jim Crow-era anti-miscegenation laws. <br /><br />Loving said in part, “Surrounded as I am now by wonderful children and grandchildren, not a day goes by that I don t think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the wrong kind of person for me to marry.”<br /><br />In the same statement, made on the 40<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the historic ruling, she expressed her support for marriage equality.<br /><br />By beginning her written decision with the Loving quote, Wright Allen drew a clear parallel between the struggle for LGBT rights, and the civil rights movement’s struggle to end Jim Crow. She’s not the first judge to do so; a federal judge in Utah made a similar <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2013/12/21/3098351/utah-marriage-equality/">argument</a> when striking down that state’s marriage ban.<br /><br />Wright Allen's ruling declared marriage a “fundamental human right” and goes on to read, “Gay and lesbian individuals share the same capacity as heterosexual individuals to form, preserve and celebrate loving, intimate and lasting relationships.”<br /><br />“Such relationships are created through the exercise of sacred, personal choices—choices, like the choices made by every other citizen, that must be free from undue government interference,” Wright Allen added.<br /><br />The judge rejected Virginia’s ban as being motivated exclusively by religion, and concluded, “We have arrived upon another moment in history when We the People becomes more inclusive, and our freedom more perfect.”<br /><br />Wright Allen’s ruling is stayed pending appeal, but Virginia’s attorney general, Mark Herring, has already stated that he will not defend the ban.<br /><br />The cause of equality also advanced in Kentucky, where a judge ordered that the state must recognize same-sex marriages performed out of state, and in Indiana, where legislators tabled a proposed amendment to add a same-sex marriage ban to the state constitution.<br /><br />But the Religious Right hasn’t conceded the equality battle just yet. A spate of so-called “conscience” bills in state legislatures across the country could potentially permit business owners to refuse service to same sex couples.<br /><br />The Kansas House of Representatives approved a <a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2014/02/13/kansas_anti_gay_segregation_bill_is_an_abomination.html">measure</a> that would permit any individual, group or private business to turn away same-sex couples if providing service would violate their religious beliefs. It would apply to all government employees. In areas dominated by the Religious Right, this would effectively permit local government and its representatives to endorse religion.<br /><br />Fortunately, there are signs the Kansas Senate realizes the implications of passing the bill. According to the Kansas <em>City-Star</em>, Senate President Susan Wagle, a Republican, has <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2014/02/13/4822324/senate-balks-at-kansas-religious.html">announced</a> that the bill does not have enough support among Republican legislators to pass, saying that while they might oppose same-sex marriage, “[M]y members don’t condone discrimination.”<br /><br />Similar <a href="http://www.bilerico.com/2014/02/right_to_discriminate_bills_introduced_in_tennesse.php">proposals</a> are up for consideration in Tennessee, Arizona and South Dakota.<br /><br />And in Idaho, legislators are considering a particularly far-reaching proposal to allow doctors and police officers to refuse aid to same-sex individuals. If passed, the bill would make it impossible for a licensed professional to lose that license for refusing anyone service based on their religious convictions.<br /><br />Local TV station KBOI <a href="http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/Idaho-Lynn-Luker--242583541.html">reports</a> that the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Lynn Luker, a Republican, can’t cite a single instance of a religious licensed professional losing that license over their beliefs. Luker insists the bill is a “pre-emptive measure.”<br /><br />If these attempts to redefine religious liberty at the expense of equality succeed, the progress made by rulings like Allen Wright’s would have little influence in entire swathes of the US.<br /><br />Segregation is wrong, whether it’s applied on the basis of race or sexual orientation. Religious liberty is enshrined in our Constitution as a fundamental freedom, but so is the concept that all Americans deserve equal treatment under the law. The sponsors of these “conscience” bills aren’t proposing them out of a desire to protect anyone’s liberties; they’re doing it to make sure that certain sectarian beliefs receive privileged treatment from the government.<br /><br />Perhaps they should read Wright Allen’s decision for a reminder on how just how morally, and legally, bankrupt their efforts really are.<br /> </p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/marriage-including-same-sex-marriage">Marriage (including same-sex Marriage)</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/marriage-equality">marriage equality</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/religious-exemptions">religious exemptions</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/kansas">Kansas</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/idaho">Idaho</a></span></div></div>Fri, 14 Feb 2014 17:21:22 +0000Ms. Sarah Jones9657 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/equality-on-the-march-same-sex-marriage-moves-forward-but-still-faces-legal#commentsStates Of Prayer: Legislators In Three States Push Bills To Promote Religion In Public Schools https://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/states-of-prayer-legislators-in-three-states-push-bills-to-promote-religion
<a href="/about/people/ms-sarah-jones">Sarah Jones</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Lawmakers in South Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee are debating bills that are designed, supporters say, to “put prayer back in schools.” </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>The Supreme Court made it clear decades ago that our public schools aren’t meant to be places for spreading religion. But for legislators in three states, court rulings are no deterrent to their dogmatic agendas.<br /><br />Lawmakers in South Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee are debating bills that are designed, supporters say, to “put prayer back in schools.” The tactics vary, but in each case the desired outcome is the same: a potentially unconstitutional violation of the separation of church and state. And the legislators behind the bills aren’t shy about their motivations.<br /><br />In a proposal to designate the first Sunday of August as “Prayer Walking Day” for public schools, Tennessee State Rep. Jimmy Matlock (R-Lenoir City) <a href="http://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/108/Bill/HJR0333.pdf">credited</a> America’s Christian majority as justification for the bill, and added a dose of theology in its text.<br /><br />“WHEREAS, we, as citizens of the State of Tennessee, value the freedom we have to gather and pray, and we acknowledge that ultimate power, protection, and security come from God,” it asserts, and later adds, “[G]iven the violent acts that have beset our nation's schools-from Columbine High School and Virginia Tech to Sandy Hook Elementary; it is imperative that people of prayer should join together, to ask God for his blessing and protection upon every child in our schools.”<br /><br />Matlock’s decision to capitalize on devastating tragedy to push his sectarian agenda should be met with public condemnation. Unfortunately, the Tennessee House already passed his proposal. It’s now under consideration by the Senate, which held its first hearing on the bill yesterday.<br /><br />And Matlock has company in this quest to insert religion in public classrooms. South Carolina’s legislature is debating a bill that would mandate a moment of silence or prayer in schools. The bill is largely redundant; the state has <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/08/south-carolina-democrat-on-school-prayer-bill-even-atheists-would-be-allowed-to-pray/">required</a> schools to observe a moment of silence since 1995.<br /><br />Sponsors had originally called for a moment of prayer only, but compromised by adding a moment of silence in a bid to make the proposal more palatable to critics.<br /><br />State Rep. Wendell Gilliard (D-Charleston) told the <a href="http://www.abcnews4.com/story/24337926/local-lawmakers-lead-push-for-prayer-in-schools-bill">press</a>, “The compromise would be to have the students to pray to whomever they want to. If they want to do away with teachers conducting the prayer, that would be fine with us. The essential part of the bill, the important part, is putting prayer back in school.”<br /><br />And as for atheists? Rep. Joseph Jefferson (D-Berkeley) assured reporters that, “Even the atheists, it gives them the option of praying or not praying without anybody interfering.”<br /><br />Meanwhile in Virginia, legislators behind a push to permit prayer and other religious activities in public schools don’t appear to have considered atheist students at all. The bill, which recently passed the state Senate, would <a href="http://hamptonroads.com/2014/01/divided-virginia-senate-passes-student-prayer-bill">require</a> that official school events allow religious speech, and is also designed to allow the formation of religious student clubs – something already covered by federal law.<br /><br />Its sponsor, State Sen. Bill Carrico (R-Grayson County), claims that all religions would be equally protected under the new law. But critics disagree. During floor debate on the bill, Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) said, “School-sponsored religion is inevitably and inherently exclusionary. Prayers are unlikely to be from anything but the majority religion due to sheer numerical superiority.”<br /><br />There is no war on the rights of Christian students. They’ve always been entitled to pray privately in school, just as they’ve been entitled to form religious clubs. The Supreme Court’ s <a href="http://www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1961/1961_468/">rulings</a> on the matter have been consistent: students cannot be <a href="http://www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1962/1962_142">coerced</a> into religious observance. Public schools were never meant to be centers for sectarianism.<br /><br />And yet, that’s exactly what these bills would like to change. There’s no question that by granting special rights to religious students, or instituting “prayer walks,” or igniting national debate over a redundant school prayer proposal, legislators are attempting to affiliate public schools with a specific religious belief system.<br /><br />The First Amendment protects public school students from becoming pawns in a culture war. It’s time state legislators remembered that. </p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/school-prayer">School Prayer</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/south-carolina">South Carolina</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/tennessee">Tennessee</a></span></div></div>Wed, 22 Jan 2014 18:27:15 +0000Ms. Sarah Jones9579 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/states-of-prayer-legislators-in-three-states-push-bills-to-promote-religion#commentsA Little List: The Top Ten Church-State Stories Of 2013 https://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/a-little-list-the-top-ten-church-state-stories-of-2013
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Here are some prominent church-state developments of 2013. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>It’s that time of year when people are compiling lists. So let’s look at the Top Ten Church-State Stories of 2013.</p><p><strong>1. Greece, N.Y., prayer case argued before U.S. Supreme Court: </strong>An Americans United-sponsored lawsuit challenging legislative prayer in the city of Greece, N.Y., <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/december-2013-church-state/featured/showdown-at-the-supreme-court">reached the Supreme Court.</a></p><p>The suit, <em>Town of Greece v. Galloway</em>, challenges the use of almost-exclusively Christian prayers before meetings of the Greece Town Board. AU’s plaintiffs, Susan Galloway and Linda Stephens, who are Jewish and atheist respectively, said the practice makes them feel like second-class citizens.</p><p>A decision in the case could have far-reaching consequences for the separation of church and state. The case was argued in December, and a ruling is expected by the end of June.</p><p><strong>2. The Supreme Court rules on same-sex marriage: </strong>In June, the Supreme Court ruled on two cases concerning same-sex marriage. The decisions in <em>U.S. v. Windsor</em> and <em>Hollingsworth v. Perry</em> had the effect of advancing the legality of same-sex marriage and led some observers to conclude that it’s only a matter of time before the practice is legal nationwide. Indeed, in the wake of those rulings, several lower courts have issued decisions favorable to same-sex marriage in other contexts, most recently in Utah.</p><p>Religious Right groups and the Roman Catholic bishops <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/september-2013-church-state/featured/wedding-crashers">reacted with anger and dismay</a> to the rulings and vowed to oppose them.</p><p><strong>3. Contraceptive lawsuits advance in the courts: </strong>Opponents of the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate filed a slew of lawsuits, asserting that the provision violates their religious liberty rights. Federal courts handed down conflicting rulings on the matter, and the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.au.org/media/press-releases/americans-united-urges-us-supreme-court-to-protect-workers-access-to-birth">has announced</a> that it will hear two cases brought by the owners of secular corporations who oppose the mandate. In the meantime, courts are beginning to issue rulings in cases brought by religiously affiliated organizations such as religiously affiliated colleges.</p><p>The spate of legal cases astounded some advocates of church-state separation and women’s rights, who assumed that access to contraceptives was a long-settled issue in the United States.</p><p><strong>4. Religious Right-backed candidates lose in Virginia:</strong> A slate of candidates backed by the Religious Right <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/december-2013-church-state/au-bulletin/religious-right-candidates-lose-va-elections">was defeated</a> in Virginia’s statewide elections in November. Ken Cuccinelli, a Republican closely aligned with the Religious Right, lost the governor’s race to Democrat Terry McAuliffe.</p><p>The GOP’s lieutenant governor candidate, E.W. Jackson, was also defeated. Jackson, a former staff member for TV preacher Pat Robertson’s Christian Coalition, lost to Democrat Ralph Northam by 10 points. Jackson, who often appears at Religious Right meetings, made several controversial statements during the campaign. He asserted that non-Christians “are engaged in some sort of false religion,” and he was criticized for earlier comments calling gay people “sick” and accusing President Barack Obama of “Muslim sympathies.”</p><p>In the attorney general’s race, Democrat Mark R. Herring defeated conservative Mark D. Obenshain in a tight race that was not settled until absentee ballots were counted.</p><p><strong>5. Anti-evolution efforts fail in Texas and other states. </strong>Attempts by creationists to water down the teaching of evolution in public school science classes failed in Texas, and anti-evolution bills collapsed in several other states.</p><p>In Texas, several members of the State Board of Education criticized proposed new science books because they did not promote creationism. The effort failed when textbook publishers <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/december-2013-church-state/people-events/book-publishers-refuse-to-create-creationist">refused to create special books</a> for Texas that downplayed evolution. The board subsequently voted to adopt textbooks that discuss evolution in depth.</p><p>Creationism fared poorly in several others states as well. The National Center for Science Education reported that <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/creationism-corralled-eight-states-reject-creationist-measures">anti-evolution bills floundered</a> in seven other states – Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma and Virginia.</p><p><strong>6. Church politicking issue reemerges: </strong>The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) in August issued a report calling on the Internal Revenue Service to lift the ban on pulpit-based partisan politicking.</p><p>An ECFA commission <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/october-2013-church-state/featured/pulpit-politicking-pushed">prepared a report</a> for U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) asserting that the current law, which prohibits all 501(c)(3) non-profits from intervening in political races between individuals, is “vague”; the groups went on to assert that the law “chills permissible speech” and “causes confusion” among non-profits.</p><p>It’s unclear what impact the report will have, but late in the year the IRS hinted that some movement on the issue may occur. The tax agency issued a document listing its goals for the fiscal year 2013-14. Among them was a line item indicating that the IRS hopes to finalize new internal procedures for conducting audits of houses of worship, a necessary first step before a church can be investigated for politicking.</p><p><strong>7. U.S. Senate votes to reject vouchers: </strong>An effort by voucher supporters to create a nationwide plan failed in the Senate in March. During a lengthy session over budget issues on March 22, U.S. Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) put forth an amendment that would have allowed 11 million low-income students to receive $1,300 each to put toward tuition at religious and other private schools.</p><p>Americans United and its allies <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/may-2013-church-state/featured/school-voucher-victory">mobilized quickly</a> to oppose the measure, and it was handily defeated by a vote of 60-39. However, voucher plans continued to advance in some states, notably North Carolina.</p><p><strong>8. Hurricane relief sparks church-state battle:</strong> In the wake of the devastating Hurricane Sandy, which struck several East Coast states in late October of 2012, some religious leaders began demanding taxpayer funds to rebuild damaged houses of worship.</p><p>The issue<a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/fema-fight-resumes-senate-ponders-taxpayer-aid-for-damaged-houses-of"> flared up</a> in the House of Representatives and Senate in 2013, with Americans United and its allies arguing that repairing and rebuilding houses of worship is a job best done with private funds, not government money. AU noted that diverting taxpayer aid for purely religious purposes would raise constitutional issues; the group also pointed out that historically, tax aid has been extended only to entities that serve a public purpose, such as libraries, schools and community centers.</p><p>No church-relief bills have passed in Congress, but AU continues to monitor the situation.</p><p><strong>9. North Carolina bill proposes official state religion:</strong> In one of the most bizarre church-state stories of the year, a North Carolina legislator introduced legislation that would have allowed local governments in the state to <a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/may-2013-church-state/au-bulletin/nc-state-religion-bill-dies-after-national-furor">declare official religions</a>.</p><p>The resolution, which was cosponsored by nine state lawmakers, asserted that “each state is sovereign and may independently determine how the state may make laws respecting an establishment of religion.” It also declared that “the North Carolina General Assembly does not recognize federal court rulings which prohibit and otherwise regulate the State of North Carolina, its public schools, or any political subdivisions of the State from making laws respecting an establishment of religion.”</p><p>House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Charlotte), had the measure pulled after it received a torrent of national and international ridicule.</p><p><strong>10. Mt. Soledad cross must be removed, court rules: </strong>In the latest twist of a long-running church-state case, a federal court ruled that a towering cross on public land in San Diego <a href="https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/cross-over-court-rules-calif-sectarian-symbol-on-government-land-must-come">must come down</a>. The Mt. Soledad cross has been the subject of litigation for more than 20 years. Although its supporters claim that the cross is a war memorial, opponents note that the cross was never described as a memorial to veterans until recent times. They also assert that a sectarian symbol like a cross cannot memorialize all war dead.</p><p>Cross defenders are appealing the decision in <em>Jewish War Veterans of the USA v. Hagel</em>.</p><p>Happy New Year!</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/creationism-evolution">Creationism &amp; Evolution</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/vouchers">Vouchers</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/prayer-at-government-events-and-legislative-meetings">Prayer at Government Events and Legislative Meetings</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/government-sponsored-religious-displays">Government-Sponsored Religious Displays</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religious-groups%E2%80%99-involvement-in-candidate-elections">Religious Groups’ Involvement in Candidate Elections</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/marriage-including-same-sex-marriage">Marriage (including same-sex Marriage)</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/reproductive-health-conscience-clauses-for-religious-objectors">Reproductive Health &amp; Conscience Clauses for Religious Objectors</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/vouchers">vouchers</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/same-sex-marriage">same-sex marriage</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/greece">Greece</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/new-york">New York</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/mt-soledad-cross">Mt. Soledad cross</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/birth-control">birth control</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/affordable-care-act">Affordable Care Act</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/evolution">evolution</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/texas">Texas</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/ew-jackson-0">E.W. Jackson</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/ken-cuccinelli">Ken Cuccinelli</a></span></div></div>Tue, 31 Dec 2013 14:43:52 +0000Rob Boston9378 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/a-little-list-the-top-ten-church-state-stories-of-2013#commentsWick-ed: Va. Principal Attacks Public Schools – While Happily Accepting A Paycheck From Themhttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/wick-ed-va-principal-attacks-public-schools-%E2%80%93-while-happily-accepting-a
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">A Virginia principal alleges that public schools are suppressing America’s Christian heritage and that they are involved in a nefarious scheme to indoctrinate our children into socialism.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>There are educators in my family, so I know a few things about how challenging that profession can be. The hours are long, the pay is often mediocre and the working conditions are sometimes not great.</p><p>But at the same time, I’ve been taught by teachers and have encountered some at the public schools my daughter and son have attended who were born to the profession. They’re just naturals. They have a gift, and it’s hard to imagine them doing anything else.</p><p>Unfortunately, there are also people working in public schools who probably ought to be doing something else.</p><p>Exhibit A is Jeffery Wick, principal of Bowling Green Elementary School in Bowling Green, Va. Wick has a new book out titled <em>Public Education: The Final Solution in the Conquest of America’s Ideals</em>. Published by a vanity press called WinePressBooks, the tome is being <a href="http://www.onenewsnow.com/Education/Default.aspx?id=1558542">heavily promoted</a> by the American Family Association (AFA), the Rev. Donald Wildmon’s fundamentalist Christian <a href="http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-report/browse-all-issues/2011/winter/the-story-behind-afas-bryan-fischer">hate group</a>.</p><p>In the book, Wick alleges that public schools are suppressing America’s Christian heritage and that they are involved in a nefarious scheme to indoctrinate our children into socialism. According to Wick’s deranged conspiracy theory, the entire plot somehow hinges on Plato’s <em>Republic</em> – although President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the 1960s counterculture are also implicated. And of course the “liberal media” is in on the plot. (What, no Masons or the Trilateral Commission?)</p><p>Even the book’s artwork, a scary looking snake wrapped around an apple, is offensive. And the use of the words “final solution” in the title invoking Adolf Hitler’s Nazi ideology isn’t exactly subtle.</p><p>I dare you to go to the <a href="http://www.theeducationagenda.com/">book’s website</a> and listen to the audio snippet titled “Author’s Beat Interview.” Shudder as you realize that this man is responsible for the education of hundreds of children in Caroline County, Va.</p><p>A narrator interviewing Wick on the site explains that in the book Wick outlines a “235-year plan to hijack American democracy” that “if left to continue will result in God’s judgment on our nation.”</p><p>What is at the core of this plot? According to OneNewsNow, the AFA’s phony “news” service, one of Wick’s beefs is that many public schools these days are sponsoring various community-oriented programs. They even dare to feed hungry children!</p><p>“He suggests a few examples – dinner service, and not just to low-income students, as well as health and wellness programs or family life materials,” reports OneNewsNow.</p><p>So, a public school that provides a meal for a child who might not otherwise eat or offers some basic medical care to a poor youngster who wouldn’t otherwise see a doctor is tearing down the Christian foundations of the nation and ushering in socialism.</p><p>Two things really frost me about guys like this. The first is that they can’t grasp the basic concept behind public schools: They are called <em>public</em> for a reason. It’s because they are for everyone. All students must be welcomed, treated with respect and educated.</p><p>Yet, Wick believes that Christianity should have a “higher place in our society.” The other kids – the Jews, the Buddhists, the Muslims, the atheists, etc. – apparently will just have to get used to their second-class citizenship. (Of course, millions of Christians who don’t share Wick’s fundamentalist outlook would also be excluded.)</p><p>The second is rather obvious: Note that Wick is eager to heap disdain on the public school system, but at the same time he’s happy to take a paycheck from it and use it to put bread on his table.</p><p>Principal Wick, if the public school system is a such a great evil, if it’s such a dangerous institution and if it’s warping the soul of the entire nation, why don’t you do the honorable thing and resign?</p><p>My guess is that we can easily find someone who really believes in the mission of public education to take your place – much to the benefit of the children of Caroline County.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/other-issues-regarding-religion-schools-and-universities">Other Issues regarding Religion in Schools and Universities</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/descriptions-and-activities-religious-right-groups">Descriptions and Activities of Religious Right Groups</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/jeffery-wick">Jeffery Wick</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/caroline-county">Caroline County</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/bowling-green-elementary-school">Bowling Green Elementary School</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/franklin-d-roosevelt">Franklin D. Roosevelt</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/plato">Plato</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/american-family-association">American Family Association</a></span></div></div>Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:31:09 +0000Rob Boston6884 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/wick-ed-va-principal-attacks-public-schools-%E2%80%93-while-happily-accepting-a#commentsAdopting Bias: New Va. Rules Seek To Safeguard ‘Faith-Based’ Bigotryhttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/adopting-bias-new-va-rules-seek-to-safeguard-%E2%80%98faith-based%E2%80%99-bigotry
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">A new Virginia policy allows faith-based agencies to deny adoption services to anyone who offends the agency’s religious or moral beliefs.</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Legislators and media pundits in Washington, D.C., continue to obsess over the birth control mandate in the new health care law and whether church-related institutions like hospitals and colleges must provide contraceptive coverage.</p><p>While that’s going, a quieter tussle in Virginia has captured fewer national headlines. That’s a shame because a debate over adoption by same-sex couples in that state is perhaps a better indicator of where the Religious Right wants to take this country.</p><p>The Virginia legislature is firmly in the hands of far-right lawmakers, and Gov. Robert McDonnell, is a graduate of TV preacher Pat Robertson’s Regent University. A dark cloud of Religious Right-style conservatism hangs over the Old Dominion.</p><p>A band of extreme legislators decided to <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/09/virginia-gay-adoption-fac_n_1266576.html">start with adoptions</a>. Virginia, like a lot of states, contracts with private agencies to facilitate adoptions. Many of these agencies are “faith based.” The old rule was that they had to serve all potential parents and apply neutral criteria to the process. An agency would investigate a person or couple wanting to adopt and reject only those who failed some objective standard – they had a criminal background, their references didn’t work out, they appeared unfit to raise a child, etc.</p><p>Under new rules that are expected to become law soon, faith-based adoption agencies will be permitted to deny services to <em>anyone</em> who fails to meet their theological litmus test. In other words, a couple could pass a criminal background check with flying colors, receive top marks from every reference, show proof of steady employment – and still be denied the right to adopt because they are gay.</p><p>This type of bigotry, while obnoxious, might be permissible in a purely privately funded agency run by a church. But as I said, most of these adoption agencies operate in a quasi-public fashion on behalf of the government, and they receive taxpayer funding.</p><p>State Sen. John Edwards, a Democrat from Roanoke, got it exactly right when he said, "You have a right to exercise religion as you see fit, but you don’t have a right to impose it on someone else using state dollars.”</p><p>And, while this is primarily a fight over adoption by gay couples, no one should think it stops there. The new Virginia policy is much broader than that. It allows faith-based agencies to deny adoption services to <em>anyone</em> who offends the agency’s religious or moral beliefs. Let’s say you’re straight but you and your spouse are deemed not religious enough, or they don’t like the fact that one of you had a previous marriage. You’re out the door too.</p><p>The Religious Right/Catholic hierarchy theory on this is simple: They want it all. They want access to your tax money to provide various social services. They want as little accountability or oversight as possible. (No accountability at all is their preference.) They demand the right to run the programs as they see fit according to their theology. They even insist that this is a constitutional right and that any attempt to impose another perspective on them – no matter widespread the consensus – is a violation of their “religious freedom.”</p><p>The more “accommodation” these groups win, the more they will demand – and the more rights of everyone else they will trample on.</p></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/faith-based-initiative-government-funding-religious-social-service-providers">The Faith-Based Initiative &amp; Government Funding of Religious Social Service Providers</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/outside-workplace-discrimination-exemptions-religious-practice-including-military-prisons">Outside the Workplace: Discrimination, Exemptions &amp; Religious Practice (including in the Military, Prisons, Housing, Healthcare, etc.)</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/other-privacy-issues-including-end-of-life-matters-etc">Other Privacy Issues (including end-of-life matters, etc.)</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/adoption">adoption</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/robert-mcdonnell">Robert McDonnell</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/pat-robertson">Pat Robertson</a></span></div></div>Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:22:12 +0000Rob Boston6757 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/adopting-bias-new-va-rules-seek-to-safeguard-%E2%80%98faith-based%E2%80%99-bigotry#commentsDoe v. Government-Sponsored Religion: Why Plaintiffs Sometimes Need To Be Anonymoushttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/doe-v-government-sponsored-religion-why-plaintiffs-sometimes-need-to-be
<a href="/about/people/rob-boston">Rob Boston</a><div class="field field-name-field-blog-type field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/blogs/wall-of-separation">Wall of Separation</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-callout field-type-text-long field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">The unpleasant fact is that church-state disputes bring out the worst in some people. </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="prose"><p>Let’s say you lived in Giles County, Va., a rural enclave of about 17,000 people in the southwestern portion of the state. Let’s say you were a high school student and you were opposed to the school board’s decision to post the Ten Commandments in your school.</p>
<p>Would you be eager to be public about it?</p>
<p>Some people might be willing to stick their necks out and take a public stand. Others might want to remain a little reticent but still look for ways to right this wrong – and they might seek to do so anonymously.</p>
<p>This is not a theoretical situation. Giles County has indeed decided to post the Commandments at Narrows High School. A student who opposes the display <a href="http://acluva.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110913GilesCo10CsDoecomplaint.pdf">is suing</a>, represented in court by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia and the Freedom from Religion Foundation.</p>
<p>The student and his or her family also wish to remain anonymous. In a court filing, the student asserts, “I fear that if my involvement were made public, I would experience social ostracism, harassment, or threats from my school peers or community members.”</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/298548">a story</a> about this that ran yesterday, the <em>Roanoke Times</em> quotes Americans United Executive Director Barry W. Lynn. AU has filed many church-state lawsuits over the years, and we’ve sometimes represented anonymous plaintiffs. (In court documents, such plaintiffs are usually referred to as “John Doe” or “Jane Doe.”)</p>
<p>“It’s very ugly out there, and because religion matters so much to people – even when it’s government-sponsored religion – people are reluctant to be plaintiffs,” Lynn said. “I wouldn’t say it’s the majority, but there are certainly a growing number of plaintiffs named ‘Doe’ in these cases.”</p>
<p>At AU, we know from experience that plaintiffs in church-state lawsuits can and do experience harassment. When we sued Judge Roy Moore, Alabama’s infamous “Ten Commandments judge,” the plaintiffs were named. That means people could track them down – and some did.</p>
<p>During the litigation, plaintiff Melinda Maddox , who was newly married, returned from her honeymoon to find that the windows of her house had been <a href="http://www.au.org/media/church-and-state/archives/2004/04/plucky-lindy.html">shot out</a>.</p>
<p>As I noted in a <a href="http://blog.au.org/2011/02/10/the-bold-and-the-brave-saluting-those-who-stand-up-for-the-church-state-wall/">February blog post</a> about plaintiffs in church-state cases, it can take real courage to stand up for church-state separation in court. Consider the case of Joann Bell, a mother in Little Axe, Okla., who protested religious activity in her children’s public schools in 1981. Her home was burned down by an arsonist.</p>
<p>These days, the web makes it easy to track down virtually anyone with just a few mouse clicks. Sites like Google Maps and Zillow provide photos of most houses. (On Zillow, an aerial photo of my house shows my car in the driveway. One can learn the square-footage of the house, the number of bathrooms, our school district and what we pay in property taxes.)</p>
<p>Francis Manion, an attorney with the American Center for Law and Justice (which is not directly involved in the Giles County case), poses as a defender of open court proceedings.</p>
<p>“The general policy is that lawsuits are supposed to be public, and the public has a right to know who is suing who, and the person being sued has a right to know,” Manion said.</p>
<p>Of course, that’s easy for Manion to say. He’s not the one who might be assaulted in school or suffer from other forms of retaliation. (Manion might want to take a look at some of the reaction the case has already sparked, as noted by the <em>Times</em>. Choice comments include: “Keep up the good work, you'll have a special place in Hell” and “Sure sounds to me like non-Christians ought to move out of Giles County before things get ugly over there.”)</p>
<p>The unpleasant fact is that cases like this bring out the worst in some people. History, sadly, provides no shortage of individuals who are quick to resort to violence in defense of their faith.</p>
<p>The federal courts have a process that allows plaintiffs to seek anonymity for a reason: to protect themselves. U.S. District Judge Michael Urbanski is currently considering the motion requesting anonymity in Giles County. This should be an easy call. The motion should be granted forthwith.</p>
</div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Issues:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religion-public-schools-and-universities">Religion in Public Schools and Universities</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/issues/religious-displays-and-holidays">Religious Displays and Holidays</a></span></div></div><div class="tags clearfix"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/francis-manion">Francis Manion</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/giles-county">Giles County</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/joann-bell">Joann Bell</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/melinda-maddox">Melinda Maddox</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/ten-commandments">ten commandments</a></span>, <span class="field-item"><a href="/tags/virginia">virginia</a></span></div></div>Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:13:59 +0000Rob Boston5935 at https://au.orghttps://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/doe-v-government-sponsored-religion-why-plaintiffs-sometimes-need-to-be#comments